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Eastern Notes: Callahan, Burke, Mascherin

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After undergoing two hip surgeries a year ago, veteran forward Ryan Callahan has been a key player for the Tampa Bay Lightning this season. While his defensive skills and penalty killing have been critical for the Lightning, he also contributed a goal and an assist Saturday in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Finals. What’s amazing, writes The Athletic’s Joe Smith (subscription required), is that Callahan admits that he thought he would need season-ending surgery back in December when he suffered a serious shoulder injury.

The 33-year-old collided with Arizona’s Oliver Ekman-Larsson in a Dec. 14 against the Arizona Coyotes in which the two players got tangled and Callahan’s shoulder vaulted into the boards. He lost three weeks of his season, rehabbing the injury, but returned in early January. Despite re-injuring the shoulder in March, he has not let up and continues to throw his body around for the Lightning in the playoffs.

“There’s no question the last three years have been tough for me,” Callahan said. “I think, for me, I appreciate this even more, especially being in the league for 12 years now too. You realize you don’t get this chance and this opportunity very often. I appreciate it and I realize how hard it is to win. And I’m trying to take advantage of it.”

  • Stu Cowan of the Montreal Gazette writes that Montreal Canadiens scout Sean Burke, who served as co-general manager with Martin Brodeur, for Team Canada at the IIHF World Championships this week, has no idea what his next step will be. Burke, who has served as a scout for Canadiens’ head coach Marc Bergevin, said he might like to return as a scout, but will wait to see if he gets a better offer. “(Marc) Bergevin has been great with me in allowing me to do both roles and gain experience here as well. So we’ll see what’s down the road, but like everybody in this business you’re looking to get better and I’ve been fortunate to work with great people,” Burke said.
  • In his most recent podcast, TSN’s Bob McKenzie talks about Florida Panthers prospect Adam Mascherin, who says he will not sign with the team and has indicated he wants to re-enter the 2018 draft. The Panthers’ 2016 second-round pick claims to have been treated poorly by the Panthers and claims to not have been offered an entry-level deal. McKenzie says the Panthers have offered him an entry-level deal, a lucrative one that compares to that of the one that the Chicago Blackhawks’ Alex DeBrincat signed. He chose not to sign, because he “wasn’t feeling the love.” McKenzie adds that Mascherin is playing a dangerous game if he re-enters the draft as most players who re-enter get drafted lower and get lesser contracts.

Toronto Maple Leafs Lead Bonus Overages List

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It looks like the Toronto Maple Leafs are at the top of at least one list. CapFriendly released a list of teams with Bonus Overages for this year, which result from players on their entry-level contracts hitting their standard bonuses. Nine teams’ performance bonuses went over the salary cap with the Maple Leafs leading with $2.55MM, which will now count against their 2018-19 cap. The bonus overages range from Toronto’s $2.55MM to the Minnesota Wild’s $25K.

The Maple Leafs’ bonuses came from just three players from the entry-level contracts of Auston Matthews, Mitch Marner and William Nylander which totaled the $2.55MM. Since the team had no remaining cap room in 2017-18, it pushes over to the following year. Most of the nine teams were at the cap threshold, while others like the Vancouver Canucks, St. Louis Blues and the Tampa Bay Lightning had some cap room to take a part of the bonus hits.

Two teams bonuses could still go up as Boston’s Jake Debrusk and Tampa Bay’s Mikhail Sergachev could each receive bonus if they are named to the All-Rookie Team.

Here is the nine-team list:

Toronto Maple Leafs: $2,550,000
Chicago Blackhawks: $1,232,500
Vancouver Canucks: $852,847
Boston Bruins: $774,000
Detroit Red Wings: $755,000
St. Louis Blues: $150,988
Tampa Bay Lightning: $142,947
Washington Capitals: $82,500
Minnesota Wild: $25,000

Chicago Blackhawks’ Improvement Coming From Within

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2017-18 wasn’t a success for the Chicago Blackhawks. For a team that registered 109 points in the previous season, anything short of Stanley Cup contention would seem disappointing. Disappointment may have been the nicest way of expressing how fans felt after the season began and the team immediately, obviously, wasn’t the same beast that had finished first in the Western Conference in 2016-17.

Maybe that should have been expected after an offseason saw incredible turnover to the roster, with Artemi Panarin, Marian Hossa, Niklas Hjalmarsson, Trevor van Riemsdyk, Brian Campbell, Marcus Kruger, Scott Darling and several others fail to return for a variety of reasons. But, with familiar faces like Brandon Saad and Patrick Sharp back in town, there was hope that they could maintain their Stanley Cup window.

It wasn’t to be, as Chicago recorded just 76 points and failed to even be in the playoff race for much of the season. Saad failed to record 20 goals, Jonathan Toews registered the worst offensive season of his career, and Corey Crawford struggled through injury.

Disappointing, to say the least.

But, with all of those negatives sticking out there may be some who have overlooked the positives from this season’s edition of the Chicago Blackhawks. Alex DeBrincat burst onto the scene with 28 goals an 52 points as a rookie, just a year after he was cut from the US World Junior team. His knack for finding open ice didn’t disappear at the NHL level, and the 20-year old winger looks like he should have several 30-goal seasons in his career.

Jordan Oesterle went from NHL cast-off to 20-minute defenseman overnight, and looks like a legitimate top-4 player for the coming years. He’ll cost the Blackhawks just $650K next season, an incredible value for a player that they’ll rely on heavily.

That brings us to Nick Schmaltz, who proved he could be an offensive contributor in the NHL with 52 points, and is the key to much of the Blackhawks success going forward. Players like Schmaltz, who were selected relatively high by Chicago in recent years, must start paying off if they’re to get back to their championship level.

Toews, Kane, Brent Seabrook and Duncan Keith aren’t getting any younger, and their contracts will continue to be tough to build around. There aren’t any free agent saviors coming to Chicago without further complicating their salary structure, perhaps to the point where it is untenable. No, the team must find success through internal development, and it looks like that is starting to happen.

The team traded Ryan Hartman, their top pick from 2013, for another first-round selection this season and prospect Victor Ejdsell. That likely won’t be happening with Schmaltz (the top selection from 2014) or DeBrincat (2016), or with Henri Jokiharju (2017) who could be a key to the whole thing. Jokiharju has developed wonderfully so far in the WHL, where he recorded 71 points in 63 games this year for the Portland Winterhawks and could be a real difference-maker on the NHL blue line in short order.

Chicago holds eight picks in this year’s draft, and they must use them to bring more talent into the system. The only way Toews, Kane and others get back to the level of success they’re used to, is if internal options take another step forward.

Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Blackhawks’ Marian Hossa Announces End Of Playing Career

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Chicago Blackhawks star Marian Hossa, who sat out the 2017-18 season due to a skin disorder and the side effects of the medications that came with it, announced that his playing career is officially over to Slovakian site Novy cas, according to Chicago Sun Times’ Mark Lazerus. While Elite Prospects listed him as retired, The Athletic’s Scott Powers (subscription required) does not mention retirement, but adds that Hossa wants to join the Chicago Blackhawks’ front office in three years when his contract expires, suggesting that he will not file retirement paperwork until then, which would allow Chicago to keep the veteran on LTIR for the next three years.

“I will not play hockey anymore,” Hossa said. “I have a valid contract with Chicago for another three years, but I have only one health and it does not allow me to return.”

The 39-year-old played 19 seasons in the NHL, eight of which for the Blackhawks as a key contributor to three Stanley Cup titles. Hossa, a five-time all-star, has had a distinguished career as he’s posted 1,134 points in 1,309 games and has been touted as one of the best defensive forwards of the game. He had a productive season in 2016-17, his last, as he put up 26 goals and 19 assists.

General manager Stan Bowman confirmed at the end of the Blackhawks season last month that Hossa’s situation had not improved.

“What I do know is that his status is unchanged,” Bowman said. “His physical condition hasn’t improved, so at this point there’s no indication he’s going to play next year, either. That’s about all I know at this point. We’ll probably have more discussions on that in the coming weeks, but his medical condition is unchanged.”

Hossa, who has been listed on LTIR for the 2017-18 season, still has three years remaining on the 12-year, $63.3MM deal he signed in 2009, which counts for a $5.275MM cap hit. On LTIR, Chicago only has to pay $1MM in salary per season. Powers writes the team will likely attempt to trade Hossa to free themselves from his contract entirely.

Cody Franson Doesn’t Expect To Re-Sign With Blackhawks

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Although he has played a big role since being demoted to the AHL, defenseman Cody Franson told Charlie Roumeliotis of NBC Sports Chicago that he doesn’t expect to be back with the Blackhawks next season:

“I’m quite certain I won’t be back next year.  This year obviously didn’t go the way that I envisioned it going and they’re in a situation with their group right now where they’re in kind of a transitional period. They’ve got some young guys that started to get some experience this year and they’ve got all those guys signed up for next year, so I’ll be looking for something different I think unless something changes. Obviously it’s not like my door’s closed, but I don’t see it going that way.”

Franson signed a tryout deal with Chicago back before training camp and successfully parlayed that into a one-year, $1MM contract.  However, it didn’t take long before he fell out of the lineup which led to him being waived and demoted back in early January.  In the end, he finished up the season with just 23 NHL games played while averaging 16:37 per night, his lowest ice time since 2011-12.

The 30-year-old has had success as a power play quarterback in the past and he has been productive with AHL Rockford (28 points in 37 regular season games and eight in seven postseason contests.  However, given how the league passed on him midseason, he may have to take a two-way pact or settle for another tryout this time around.

Poll: Which Conference Finals Team Benefitted The Most At Trade Deadline?

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With a lot of attention that has gone towards the success of trade acquisition Paul Stastny in the playoffs this season, the Winnipeg Jets and general manager Kevin Cheveldayoff look to have scored at the trade deadline this offseason. The GM was able to pick up Stastny’s expiring contract (50 percent of which was retained) as the team traded away Providence College prospect Erik Foley as well as their 2018 first-rounder and a conditional 2020 fourth-rounder (if Foley doesn’t sign with the Blues before he can become an unrestricted free agent in 2019). While losing a prospect and a first-rounder, the Jets have defintely benefitted by Stastny’s play, especially in the playoffs. The 32-year-old center, alongside youngsters Nikolaj Ehlers and Patrik Laine has put up six goals and nine assists in 13 games during the playoffs and has helped vault Winnipeg into a one-game lead in the Western Conference finals.

Of the other three teams that remain in the playoffs, the trade deadline also seems to have benefitted the Tampa Bay Lightning. Their acquisition of defenseman Ryan McDonagh and forward J.T. Miller from the New York Rangers at the deadline also brought some stability to the Lightning from both players. McDonagh added a stable presence on the defense’s second line, while Miller has excelled playing next to Steven Stamkos and Nikita Kucherov. McDonagh has aided the team’s offense with five assists in 11 games, while Miller has had two goals and five asissts in 11 games as well. In exchange for those two, the Lightning were able to avoid trading off any elite prospects to the Rangers, but still gave up a lot of pieces, including Vladislav Namestnikov, prospects Brett Howden and Libor Hajek, their 2018 first-rounder and another potential first-round pick in 2019 if Tampa Bay wins the Stanley Cup in either of the next two years.

The Washington Capitals, with little cap room to work with at the trade deadline, still were able to pull off a couple of small trades, although the addition of Michal Kempny has had a major affect on the Capitals’ defense. With a number of young, inexperienced blueliners and little money to add a high-profile player, the team traded the Toronto Maple Leafs’ third-round pick in 2018 for Kempny. While the former Blackhawks’ defenseman had never played a full season in the NHL, he is 27 and had quite a bit of experience in the KHL and Czech Republic.

Finally, the Golden Knights did make one big trade at the deadline, sending a 2018 first-round pick, a 2019 second-round pick and a 2021 third-round pick to acquire Tomas Tatar. While the addition of Tatar is not a rental like many of the others (he has three years left at $5.3MM AAV after this year), the team gave up a lot for a player who has made little impact in Vegas. The 27-year-old has been a healthy scratch for much of the playoffs, having only played in four games with no points.

So, which team has benefiited the most from this year’s trade deadline?

What conference finals team made the best trade deadline move?
Winnipeg Jets (Paul Stastny) 56.64% (405 votes)
Tampa Bay Lightning (Ryan McDonagh & J.T. Miller) 31.61% (226 votes)
Washington Capitals (Michal Kempny) 9.09% (65 votes)
Vegas Golden Knights (Tomas Tatar) 2.66% (19 votes)
Total Votes: 715

Trade Rumors app users, click here to vote.

Offseason Keys: Chicago Blackhawks

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While the playoffs are ongoing, many teams have already started their offseason planning.  What storylines lie ahead around the league?  Our Offseason Keys series continues with a look at the Chicago Blackhawks.

The bubble was going to burst one day but not many expected things would go that bad that quick as it did for Chicago in 2017-18.  One year after winning the difficult Central Division, things spiralled in the wrong direction as struggles and injuries saw them go from the top to the bottom while finishing 16 points out of sixth place.  Here are some keys to their offseason.

Find A Backup Upgrade

As part of the Artemi Panarin – Brandon Saad swap at the draft last June, Chicago picked up what they thought was their long-term replacement for Scott Darling in Anton Forsberg.  Corey Crawford’s head injury actually resulted in Forsberg leading the way in games played and to put it nicely, he didn’t take advantage of the opportunity.  In 35 appearances, he posted a 2.97 GAA and a .908 SV%, numbers that were below the league average.

Jeff Glass and Jean-Francois Berube also got chances and their performances weren’t any better.  Glass is an unrestricted free agent and there’s a good chance he won’t be back and while Berube has another year left on his deal, he isn’t going to be in the discussion to be Crawford’s backup.  Forsberg is also signed for next season but after the year he had, bringing in someone to try to upgrade would make some sense.

Reload Up Front

The Blackhawks have long been right up against the Upper Limit and 2017-18 was no exception.  With most of their locked up on long-term, big money contracts, that isn’t likely to change, even with the expected increase in the salary cap.  They currently have just over $67.5MM tied up in 16 players for next year, per CapFriendly, an amount that includes winger Marian Hossa ($5.275MM) who is likely headed back for LTIR next season.

The good news for Chicago is that they don’t have many pricey free agents to re-sign.  Winger Anthony Duclair’s $1.2MM qualifying offer is the most expensive of the restricted free agents (and with the year he had, he may not get one) while winger Vinnie Hinostroza is in line for a raise on the $717K he earned but neither of them are going to break the bank.

The bad news is of those 16 skaters under contract, only seven (excluding Hossa) are forwards.  They basically have to try and build half of a forward unit and will need to add a couple of top-six pieces if they really want to bolster that unit.  They have a good collection of young, cheap forwards headed up by Alex DeBrincat and Nick Schmaltz but they aren’t ready to shoulder the load just yet so putting some of those youngsters in lesser roles to start would be ideal.  GM Stan Bowman is going to be busy this summer and this forward unit may look a whole lot different a few months from now.

Decision On Anisimov

Around the trade deadline, most of the pieces that Chicago had to trade were expiring contracts but one player that was garnering some interest was center Artem Anisimov.  He had a down year offensively and saw a bit of time in the bottom six, not an ideal place for someone signed for $4.55MM for three more years.

With Jonathan Toews entrenched long-term as their top center and Schmaltz looking like he could be their number two option in the not-too-distant future, there’s a possibility that Anisimov becomes expendable, especially if they have plans for adding some top-six help up front in free agency.  Also, if they want to shake up the core up front, he’s the logical fit to move as Toews, Saad, and Patrick Kane aren’t going to go anywhere.

Centers are always in high demand and once the top few go when the market opens up in July, Anisimov would be an intriguing fallback plan for a team that strikes out.  However, at the same time, Chicago’s depth down the middle is also relatively inexperienced beyond Toews so even though he’s coming off of a down year and is a bit pricey for his production, keeping Anisimov around as an insurance policy isn’t a bad idea either.  Bowman will certainly have an interesting decision to make on the 29-year-old’s future in the weeks to come.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

KHL Notes: Tolchinsky, Shalunov, Kaprizov

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The Carolina Hurricanes signed Sergey Tolchinsky in 2013 after his first season in the CHL. An entry-level contract was a small risk to sign a player who showed such impressive skill as a rookie in the OHL, scoring 26 goals and 51 points in 2012-13. He’d follow it up with two 90+ point seasons for the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds, leading many to believe that even though he was undersized he may have an NHL future.

Well, after three seasons in the AHL and just a handle of NHL appearances, it appears the relationship is over. In today’s article for the Charlotte Checkers’ website, Nicholas Niedzielski reports that Tolchinsky has left the team and returned home to Russia. “He didn’t want to be a part of the team, so we granted his wish,” said head coach Mike Vellucci. Tolchinsky was scheduled to become a restricted free agent this summer, and the Hurricanes will retain his NHL rights by issuing a qualifying offer if they so choose.

  • Another player who feels different about his NHL club is Maxim Shalunov, who still expects to join the Chicago Blackhawks at some point down the road. As Scott Powers of The Athletic (subscription required) writes, Shalunov himself has admitted he wants to head to the NHL after his current contract with CSKA Moscow expires. That’s not for another two years, but the Blackhawks don’t mind waiting for the talented winger. Standing 6’4″ 215-lbs, the 25-year old has a big shot and recorded 20 goals in 46 games for CSKA this season. Scoring two more points today at the IIHF World Championships, he could inject some serious offensive power into the Blackhawks lineup whenever he does come over.
  • Speaking of success at the Worlds, Minnesota Wild draft pick Kirill Kaprizov continues to show why he’s regarded as one of the top offensive talents outside of the NHL. He scored his tournament-leading (tied with Sebastian Aho) fourth goal today, giving him six points through three games to tie him with Pavel Datsyuk for the lead on Team Russia. After a frosty start to their relationship, Kaprizov and Minnesota seem to be heading towards a contract of some sort down the line—though it still might have to wait a few more years. The 21-year old forward scored 40 points in 46 games for CSKA this season.

Snapshots: Stars Goaltending, Guentzel, Kane, Shalunov

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Armed with a new head coach, the Dallas Stars can begin to get to work to fixing their team after the team failed to qualify for the playoffs despite a flurry of offseason moves last year. While, the team has many issues to deal with, one key area of need is finding a quality back-up goaltender.

The team is finally released from a five-year, $29.5MM deal it gave to eventual backup Kari Lehtonen. However, the $5.9MM AAV for a player who produced a 2.56 GAA and a .912 wasn’t worth it. On top of that, at age 34, the team needs a backup that can take over the workload for oft-injured starter Ben Bishop.

SportsDay’s Mike Heika writes there are several potential options for Dallas, but the best-case scenario would be for the Stars to chase Carter Hutton, who backed up Jake Allen last year. Hutton, who could easily fill in full-time in case Bishop gets hurt, could also be expensive as the 32-year-old veteran may hope to land a starting job somewhere. He was 17-7-3 last year with a 2.09 GAA in 32 games this past year in St. Louis. Other options would consist of Jonathan Bernier, Andrew Hammond, Michael Hutchinson and Anton Khudobin.

  • While it may not come as a surprise, the Washington Post’s Isabelle Khurshudyan reports that the NHL Department of Player Safety does not intend to have a hearing with Pittsburgh Penguins Jake Guentzel, who hit John Carlson during Saturday’s game against the Washington Capitals. Despite complaints from Capitals head coach Barry Trotz, Khurshudyan the league felt it was a full-body hit.
  • With the season on the line, The Athletic’s Kevin Kurz (subscription required) writes that while San Jose Sharks’ trade deadline acquisition Evander Kane has been highly successful since coming over from Buffalo, that hasn’t been the case during the team’s second-round series against the Vegas Golden Knights. Kane has scored just one point in the series and the team will need them to pull off a two-game sweep to advance to the conference finals. Kurz wonders whether Kane’s health has been an issue as he has skipped the morning skate for both of the team’s last two games.
  • Chicago Blackhawks prospect Maxim Shalunov has been improving steadily in the KHL and the 2011 fourth-round prospect is looking more interesting, but The Athletic’s Scott Powers (subscription required) writes that the 25-year-old is still two years away from reaching Chicago after he signed a three-year extension to remain in the KHL last offseason. As Shalunov has developed in Russia, he’s also received more attention recently from the Russian national team and while he didn’t get the invitation to the Olympics that he was hoping for, he did get the invite to play in the World Championships.

Snapshots: Johnson, Dubinsky, Blackhawks, Pettersson, Mittelstadt

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Two long-time veterans seem to be on the outside looking in this offseason as the Columbus Blue Jackets as both defenseman Jack Johnson and center Brandon Dubinsky struggled last season and saw little to no playing time in the playoff. Johnson didn’t play in any of the Blue Jackets playoff games against Washington, even though they lost four in a row. Dubinsky ranked 10th among forwards in average ice time and only played 4:09 in the final playoff game.

While the team is highly unlikely to bring back Johnson as he is an unrestricted free agent and Columbus is overloaded in solid blueliners, Dubinsky is another situation, according to Aaron Portzline of The Athletic (subscription required). The 32-year-old still has three years remaining on the six-year deal he signed in 2014 at $5.85MM AAV. He is the third-highest paid player on the team behind goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky and winger Artemi Panerin. Portzline writes that with his drop in production this year (16 points compared to 41 in 2016-17), the veteran has no trade value and a buyout at this stage isn’t worth it. That means the team is stuck with him and only a renewed effort by Dubinsky could regain him his old role.

  • The Athletic’s Scott Powers (subscription required) writes the Chicago Blackhawks, who will pick eighth overall in the 2018 NHL Draft, the highest they’ve drafted since they chose Patrick Kane with the first overall pick in 2007, might be looking for the most NHL ready player when they pick. “You never know,” head coach Joel Quenneville said after the season ended. “You can’t discount that. They say that there’s a lot of good players in this year’s draft. Getting a player at the number is going to be a good opportunity for our scouts, there’s some excitement in that area.”
  • Previously rumored, but Sportsnet’s Rick Dhaliwal reports that Vancouver Canucks prospect Elias Pettersson and backup goaltender Anders Nilsson have each made the preliminary roster for Sweden for the World Championships this summer in Denmark. Pettersson, the team’s first-round pick in 2017, who had the best season ever for a 18-year-old rookie in the SHL, is expected to compete for a roster spot with the Canucks in training camp.
  • There were a few surprises Saturday when the U.S. released their preliminary roster for the World Championships this summer when Buffalo Sabres’ Casey Mittelstadt wasn’t on the roster. The Buffalo News’ John Vogl reports that Mittelstadt didn’t make the roster due to the fact that he’s battling a groin injury, although general manager Jason Botterill said it wasn’t serious. “It’s a groin, but it shouldn’t be anything more than a couple weeks,” Botterill said. “But obviously with the tournament starting next week, it just didn’t make any sense for him to go over there.”

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